- a minimum of one biography;
- at least one memoir;
- a healthy dose of at least four classics (e.g., Pascal, Dostoyevsky, Shakespeare, etc.);
- at least one history book;
- several writing books;
- at least two books by authors I’ve never read before;
- a minimum of one poetry book;
- a few books from my favorite authors, such as C.S. Lewis and Wendell Berry;
- a minimum of two books in a new discipline or field of interest (e.g., logic, gardening, ethics, archaeology, etc.);
- at least one children’s book, since I am still a child at heart and a great admirer of picture books and juvenile literature;
- one or two selections from a short list of books I reread every few years, some serious, some life-changing, some fanciful, from A. A. Milne’s The House at Pooh Corner to The Pursuit of God by A. W. Tozer.
Search Results for: annual reading plan
I Like Quotation Marks
I recently read a book. Don’t look so surprised. In my annual reading plan (which I discussed here), I try to discover a few new authors every year. One of this year’s authors is the late Brian Doyle, essayist and novelist. His book has been a joy. However, he, like an increasing number of novelists (seemingly), eschews quotation marks in his fictional dialogue. Like this: What does it feel like? …
Read Old, Read New
I’ve posted before on this blog about my annual reading plan (here), which I’ve done for most of my life to keep my reading varied and voluminous, year after year. So it will come as no surprise to those who know me or know of my reading plan that I strongly advise reading both new books and old books, especially for writers. Thus, two of the categories in my annual reading plan are “classics” and …
20 Books That Molded Me
I’ve read thousands of books in my lifetime. I’ve written on this blog about why I read and about my annual reading plan. I’ve posted about how to read more. So, yeah, I read a lot. Wanna make something of it? Where was I? Oh yeah. Over the course of my decades of reading, I’ve even kept a record of the books I’ve read. So, not only can I tell you (if not by memory at least by a quick …
10 Ways to Read More
A few weeks ago, I posted on this site about my annual reading plan, which usually guides ¼ to 1/3 of the 100 (or so) books I read each year. As often happens when I talk about my reading plan, several people asked, “How do you read so much?” After all, I keep fairly busy as a husband, father, grandfather, writer, speaker, literary agent, and man-about-town. So how do I manage to read a book or …
The 2023 Book Launch Blueprint
Thirty days. That’s all you’ve got. Do it wrong, and you’re toast. Do it right, and it’s crème brûlée that will last for months, maybe even years. What 30 days are we talking about? The first 30 days after you make your book available to the world. During the first 30-60 days after your release, […]
You can listen to this episode The 2023 Book Launch Blueprint on Christian Publishing Show.
The 2023 Book Launch Blueprint
Thirty days. That’s all you’ve got. Do it wrong, and you’re toast. Do it right, and it’s crème brûlée that will last for months, maybe even years. What 30 days are we talking about? The first 30 days after you make your book available to the world. During the first 30-60 days after your release, […]
You can listen to this episode The 2023 Book Launch Blueprint on Christian Publishing Show.
How to Choose a Genre for Your Novel with Karin Beery
Learn how and why you need to choose a genre, and find out what to do if your book doesn't conform to one specific genre.
You can listen to this episode How to Choose a Genre for Your Novel with Karin Beery on Christian Publishing Show.
Stop Procrastinating—Right Now!
In my last post on this amazing blog (Steve Laube requires me to say that at regular intervals), I opined about seven consequences of procrastination. You may not have gotten around to reading it yet, but I promised in that post to follow up with some helpful tips or techniques for preventing procrastination. So, without further ado or delay, here are some ideas: Pray. Of course, right? But …
Publishing Mistakes You Don’t Want to Learn the Hard Way
One author shares what he learned from eleven publishing mistakes. Find out how to avoid these common mistakes so you don't have to learn the hard way.
You can listen to this episode Publishing Mistakes You Don’t Want to Learn the Hard Way on Christian Publishing Show.